Essential Projects

Many “nonessential” businesses scaled back or suspended operations back in March when the magnitude of the COVID-19 outbreak became apparent. At the same time many states, including Oregon, deemed the construction industry to be “essential.” The pandemic has interrupted or delayed some supply chains (especially for materials sourced overseas), and the protocols and precautions necessary to protect construction workers undoubtedly have added extra time, effort, and cost. Generally though, builders have adjusted to the new normal and projects continue to plug along. 

The local jobs that broke ground before 2020’s unprecedented shutdown are now either well underway, nearing completion, or just recently completed. For readers who may not live in the Eugene-Springfield area, the level of current construction activity may come as a surprise. The following is just a sampling of the more significant examples. There are other projects I could have listed here as well; if I failed to acknowledge a particularly noteworthy one, feel free to leave a comment below. 

Hayward Field

The new Hayward Field project has crossed the finish line, but no one’s taken a victory lap yet. The jaw-dropping design by the SRG Partnership will have to wait. The facility was supposed to host the 2020 PAC-12 Track & Field Championships, the 2020 Olympic Trials, and the annual Prefontaine Classic, but all have been canceled or postponed. Additionally, the IAAF has moved the 2021 World Athletics Championships—a primary impetus for the rebuilding of Hayward Field—to 2022. Until the day of the first meet arrives, we’ll just have to wait to see if the new Hayward Field rekindles the magic of the historic venue it replaces. 

Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact

The University of Oregon is staking much upon the success of the Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact, now approaching completion. If the project fulfills its promise, it will attract leading researchers and research dollars to the university, enhancing its prestige and stature.

Despite its importance and correspondingly significant budget, the design by Ennead and BORA isn’t as commanding a presence as I initially imagined it would be. Instead, notwithstanding its bulk and the presence of the heroic new pedestrian overpass, it cuts an otherwise unassuming figure along Franklin Boulevard. Its north side fronting the old canoe canal is more transparent and deferential to its setting. 

The Market Expansion

The Obie Companies’ $75 million 5^th Street Market Expansion appears to be on target for completion later this year. As it has taken shape, it’s clear the mixed-use design by Ankrom Moison will energize the Market District. Of course, this assumes traditional retail and leisure, and the attractions of urban living, rebound once the pandemic subsides. If they do, I predict downtown Eugene’s renaissance will finally shift into high gear. The Market Expansion will greatly add to the critical mass necessary to attract further commercial and residential development to the heart of the city. 

Market District Commons

Bergsund Delaney Architecture and Planning designed the Market District Commons for Homes for Good, Lane County’s housing agency and a prominent developer of affordable housing for low-income persons and families. The Market District Commons, like the neighboring Market Expansion, is a mixed-use project. It will include 50 affordable housing units plus commercial space. Homes for Good partnered with the Obie Companies to develop the project. The project appears to be tracking toward completion this fall. 

The Commons on MLK

Also designed by Bergsund Delaney for Homes for Good, The Commons on MLK will provide 51 units to house and support previously homeless individuals. 

Midtown Arts Center

With its concealing shroud, the new Midtown Arts Center is like a present waiting to be unwrapped. I’m looking forward to the big reveal, which should occur in a few short months. As I mentioned previously, Dustrud Architecture designed the Center to precisely be the kind of mixed-use project Eugene needs to meet its goals for compact growth. It will be the future home for the Eugene Ballet, providing it with space befitting a first-class dance troupe and instructional academy. Scale-wise, the bulk of the seven-story building isn’t overwhelming, though it does somewhat crowd the sidewalks and the adjacent street trees. 

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 crisis has hit the Eugene Ballet hard. The pandemic has forced the company to suspend its performance schedule and programs, including its summer Academy for aspiring dancers. If good fortune prevails, the Ballet may soon move into its new home, enriching the local arts scene as it resumes training, rehearsals, and teaching. 

UO Hamilton Walton Transformation

Quickly taking shape, Phase One of the UO Hamilton Walton Transformation project will provide residences for approximately 700 students when it opens a year from now. Two additional construction phases will follow, ultimately resulting in removal of Walton Hall to make space for 700 additional beds, and removal of Hamilton Hall to make room for a new “Humpy-Lumpy” outdoor space. Designed by Rowell Brokaw Architects with Mithun, the overall project is targeting LEED Gold certification. 

Autzen Stadium East Scoreboard 

Not a building per se, but a significant construction project nevertheless. Privately funded, the $12 million new east scoreboard will be the largest in all of college football when it is completed. Designed and fabricated by Daktronics (with local design assistance by Cameron McCarthy Landscape Architecture and Planning) the immense video screen will be 186 feet wide (wider than the distance between the sidelines of the field!) and 66 feet tall. Alas, with the cancelation of the 2020 PAC-12 football season, Duck fans will have to wait until 2021 to see the new scoreboard in operation. 

Several equally significant building projects are set to begin construction in 2021. These include the following: 

• Edison Elementary School
• North Eugene High School
• Eugene Family YMCA
• Eugene-Broadway Apartments (current Café Yumm at East Broadway and Hilyard Street)
• Eugene Downtown Riverfront Development
• Eugene Town Square

Despite the contagion-induced slowdown for the greater economy, construction activity remains robust here in the Eugene-Springfield market. I’m sure certain building sectors are suffering (for example, I suspect many owners or developers have cancelled or indefinitely postponed their retail, restaurant, and hospitality projects); nevertheless, the Governor’s designation of construction as an essential industry early on has lessened the consequences for many. The economic hardship of a severe recession may be in store for us, but for now building design and construction industry in Oregon—while utilizing best practices to avoid transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus—is showing staying power.

(All photos above are by me)